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731. The Price of Peace: Securing UN Financing for AU Peace Operations

Author:
International Crisis Group
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
The African Union is best positioned to send peacekeepers to the continent’s various war zones. But it often lacks the funds available to the UN’s blue helmets. A compromise over co-financing peacekeeping missions would serve the conflict prevention goals of both institutions. What’s new? Attempts to reach agreement upon a UN Security Council resolution on using UN assessed contributions to co-finance African Union (AU) peace support operations have ended acrimoniously, damaging relations between the Council and the AU Peace and Security Council. Discussions are now on hold, offering the parties an opportunity to clarify positions. Why does it matter? Access to UN financing offers the hope of predictable and sustainable funding for vital AU peace operations, whose offensive mandates are often better suited to current conflict dynamics in Africa. An AU summit in February 2020 could determine if and how the proposal is pursued. What should be done? The UN and AU should pursue a compromise. It could involve agreeing to treat AU troop contributions as in-kind payment, creating a joint mechanism for monitoring human rights compliance, and stipulating that a commander reporting to both institutions will lead co-financed missions.
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, United Nations, Peacekeeping, Conflict, and African Union
Political Geography:
Africa

732. Easing Syrian Refugees’ Plight in Lebanon

Author:
International Crisis Group
Publication Date:
02-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Most Syrian refugees in Lebanon have thought many times about going home but in the end deemed the risks too great. Donors should increase aid allowing the Lebanese government to continue hosting the Syrians, so that any decision they make to leave is truly voluntary. What’s new? Pressure on Syrian refugees in Lebanon to return home is rising. Although Syria remains unsafe for most, refugees are trickling back, escaping increasingly harsh conditions in Lebanon and hoping that the situation will improve back home. Procedures that clarify refugees’ legal status are making return more plausible for some. Why does it matter? While even a small number of successful repatriations represents positive news, conditions are too dangerous for mass organised returns. Yet the Syrian government and some Lebanese political factions increasingly insist that it is time for large-scale returns to begin. What should be done? Donors should plan for many refugees to stay for many years, and provide support to help Lebanon meet Syrians’ needs, ease the burden on Lebanon’s economy, and reduce friction between refugees and their Lebanese hosts. The Lebanese government can take additional administrative steps to ease voluntary returns.
Topic:
Government, Refugees, Syrian War, and Humanitarian Crisis
Political Geography:
Middle East, Lebanon, and Syria

733. A Roundtable on Joseph S. Nye, Jr. Do Morals Matter?: Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump

Author:
Kelly M. McFarland, Lori Clune, Danielle Richman, Wilson D. (Bill) Miscamble, Seth Jacobs, Vanessa Walker, and Joseph S. Nye Jr.
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR)
Abstract:
A Roundtable on Joseph S. Nye, Jr. Do Morals Matter?: Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, Political Theory, International Relations Theory, Political Science, American Presidency, and Morality
Political Geography:
United States and Global Focus

734. A Roundtable on Monica Kim The Interrogation Rooms of the Korean War: The Untold History

Author:
Mitchell Lerner, Judy Tzu-Chun Wu, Arissa H. Oh, Zachary M. Matusheski, Peter Banseok Kwon, and Monica Kim
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR)
Abstract:
A Roundtable on Monica Kim The Interrogation Rooms of the Korean War: The Untold History
Topic:
International Relations, Cold War, War, History, Military Affairs, United States, Korean War, and Diplomatic History
Political Geography:
South Korea, North Korea, Korea, and Korean Peninsula

735. The United States and the World Health Organization

Author:
Theodore M. Brown
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR)
Abstract:
A little more than two months ago, U.S. President Donald Trump began to lash out at the World Health Organization, blaming it for what he claimed were missteps, failures, and prevarications in its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Then, on April 14, after several days of threats, he announced that U.S. funding for the WHO would be frozen for sixty to ninety days while his administration conducted a review to “assess the World Health Organization’s role in severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of coronavirus.” Widely seen as a transparent attempt to deflect attention from his own inconsistent, incompetent, and irresponsible response to the crisis, Trump’s threatened withdrawal of funds from the WHO at a critical moment drew widespread condemnation from medical and public health leaders. Richard Horton, the editor-in-chief of Lancet, called Trump’s decision a “crime against humanity.” Dr. Georges Benjamin, the executive director of the American Public Health Association, “denounced” the Trump administration’s decision to halt U.S. contributions to the WHO, which, he said, would “cripple the world’s response to COVID-19 and would harm the health and lives of thousands of Americans.”
Topic:
International Cooperation, World Health Organization, Coronavirus, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
United States and Global Focus

736. A Roundtable on Daniel Bessner and Fredrik Logevall, “Recentering the United States in the Historiography of American Foreign Relations”

Author:
Chester Pach, Cindy Ewing, Kevin Y. Kim, Daniel Bessner, and Fredrik Logevall
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR)
Abstract:
A Roundtable on Daniel Bessner and Fredrik Logevall, “Recentering the United States in the Historiography of American Foreign Relations”
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, International Relations Theory, and Diplomatic History
Political Geography:
United States and Global Focus

737. Roundtable on Timothy J. Lynch, In the Shadow of the Cold War: American Foreign Policy from George Bush Sr. to Donald Trump

Author:
Jeffrey A. Engel, R. Joseph Parrott, Heather Marie Stur, Steven J. Brady, and Timothy Lynch
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
The Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR)
Abstract:
Roundtable on Timothy J. Lynch, In the Shadow of the Cold War: American Foreign Policy from George Bush Sr. to Donald Trump
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, American Presidency, Post Cold War, and Diplomatic History
Political Geography:
United States and Global Focus

738. Unknown Suburbs: Azerbaijani Settlements of the Gardabani Municipality

Author:
Aleksandre Kvakhadze
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgian Foundation for Strategic International Studies -GFSIS
Abstract:
Since declaring its independence, the Georgian state has been struggling with the integration of its ethnic minorities. The regions densely populated by ethnic Azerbaijanis and Armenians have been passively involved in the social and political processes in Georgia. The combination of the legacy of Soviet ‘national policy,’ an ineffective educational system and socio-economic problems hinder the integration of these regions. This paper will be devoted to the Gardabani municipality, an administrative entity with a significant Azerbaijani population. Several factors have determined the choice of this region for this study. Firstly, geographically speaking, the region represents a suburban area of the cities of Tbilisi and Rustavi. It can be considered as a part of ‘greater Tbilisi/Rustavi’ or a ‘Tbilisi-Rustavi agglomeration.’ Secondly, despite its proximity to Georgia’s political and economic center, the Azerbaijani community in this region has been leading a parallel life and is disconnected from the country’s social and political dynamics. Simultaneously, very little is known about this region and very little research has been carried out on its multi-ethnic population. Unlike the neighboring Marneuli municipality, which has been receiving increasing attention from academia, the media and the non-governmental sector, the Azerbaijani population in Garbadani remains neglected by academic and non-governmental bodies. For instance, there is no comprehensive academic research on the linguistic, historical, ethnologic, social and religious parameters of Azerbaijanis in Gardabani. The absence of reliable works leads to myths and uncertainties regarding Georgia’s Azerbaijanis. Thirdly, the Gardabani municipality has been an artificially fabricated landmass with at least two culturally and geographically unrelated regions which leads to the lack of interaction between the ethnic Georgian and the Azerbaijani population. Nevertheless, the Gardabani municipality has a significant potential due its strategic geographic location. Several strategic pipelines and the Georgian railway cross the region. In addition to infrastructural and economic development, using the potential of human resources is crucial in regional development. Incorporating the Azerbaijani population of the region in Georgia’s domestic socio-political dynamics and removing the ethnic boundaries will reinforce the development of the region. This paper will discuss the economy, religion, education, women’s rights, organized crime, politics and inter-ethnic relationships in the Gardabani municipality. This paper is a first endeavor to describe this region’s Azerbaijani population. I hope that this paper will become a source of guidance for practitioners, scholars, journalists and NGO activists and assist them to implement their projects in this region. I also hope that it will lead to more comprehensive research on this region.
Topic:
Education, Religion, Governance, Minorities, Women, and Economic Development
Political Geography:
Eurasia, Caucasus, Azerbaijan, and Georgia

739. The Spread of COVID-19 in the Middle East - Problems and Challenges

Author:
Zurab Batiashvili
Publication Date:
06-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgian Foundation for Strategic International Studies -GFSIS
Abstract:
The novel coronavirus (COVID 19) and its side-effects have transformed the contemporary world. Since the pandemic is just now starting, no one really knows what the world will be like after the virus. However, we can confidently say that there will be serious changes as a result of which our planet will no longer be what it was prior to the spread of this virus. These changes naturally concern the Middle East as well. Much like the majority of other states, Middle Eastern countries were also mostly unprepared to meet the pandemic. Many of the governments in the region could not or did not take the impending threat seriously when the virus was spreading in China. Due to this, at the initial stage many governments simply covered up or ignored the facts of the virus spreading in their countries. A little later these governments were forced to admit the existence of the problem, yet they mostly blamed their political rivals for the creation and spreading of the virus. Such an attitude was facilitated by the fact that conspiracy theories are rather popular among Middle Eastern societies and governments. Covering up and disregarding the problem later produced a boomerang effect for these countries and their citizens. Most of the Middle Eastern governments went on to introduce radical measures (closing places of prayer where mass gatherings take place). However, in many cases these measures were already too late in coming – the coronavirus had spread throughout the entire Middle East. At the same time, the spread of the virus in the Middle East is further facilitated by the faulty healthcare system, the lack of doctors, the low level of education, unending civil wars, conflicts and a large number of refugees as well as the desire of governments to hide the actual data as much as possible (for example, according to the official Syrian statistics, only one person was infected with the novel coronavirus before March 25 while the Assad regime introduced a curfew in the capital city of Damascus in order to combat the illness. According to independent sources, the novel coronavirus has already spread all over Syria and there are casualties, too). At the same time, many Middle Eastern states lack sufficient medical equipment in order to analyze and fully document persons who have contracted the virus.
Topic:
Health, Governance, COVID-19, and Non-Traditional Threats
Political Geography:
Middle East

740. China’s Activities in the South Caucasus: Issue 1, 29.06.2020 – 26.07.2020

Author:
Medea Ivaniadze
Publication Date:
07-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgian Foundation for Strategic International Studies -GFSIS
Abstract:
The digest covers China’s political, diplomatic, economic and other activities in the South Caucasus region and relations between China and the South Caucasus countries. It relies on a wide variety of sources, including the Chinese media. It is worth noting that the Chinese media is controlled by the Communist Party of China (according to the World Press Freedom Index China is nearly at the bottom of the list and ranks 177th out of 180 countries).
Topic:
Diplomacy, Politics, Media, Economy, and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)
Political Geography:
China, Eurasia, Caucasus, Asia, and South Caucasus